


Varian's Dark Side Returns

by TheDragonKat



Series: Varian and the Seven Kingdom stories [1]
Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon), Tangled (2010)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Hugo knows of Varian's past before he joins, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture, Inspired by Varian and the Seven Kingdoms - Kaitlyn Ritter & Anna Lencioni, Sad Varian (Disney), Suicide Attempt, That is the only thing he knows about Varian, The group has a talk about Varian's past, They want to help him, Varian Has Issues (Disney), Varian and the Seven Kingdoms AU, dark varian, nothing shown it is just said and a few mentions of their wounds., varian and the seven kingdoms - Freeform, varian needs a hug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-11
Updated: 2020-06-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 00:15:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24654445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheDragonKat/pseuds/TheDragonKat
Summary: This is from a prompt from discord.It basically was about Hugo knowing about Varian's past before he joined the group. After meeting the guy, he realizes that there is no Varian could have done those guys. He tells Donella that they have the wrong guy
Series: Varian and the Seven Kingdom stories [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1785265
Comments: 2
Kudos: 64





	Varian's Dark Side Returns

**Author's Note:**

> So hope you enjoyed this, especially the one who requested this prompt. Sorry for the grammar mistakes and man did I made this dark.

Hugo spent a lot of time with thugs and low lives because of his job. He always took what they said with a grain of salt because they tended to exaggerate things to make themselves cooler. One story sounded like it was exaggerated though it was not about any of the people there. It was about the Kingdom of Corona and how a mad scientist attacked the royal family and was part of a terrorist group. If it was not for the number of people who claimed it was real, he wouldn't have believed it. He did not give it much thought about it since he did not expect to ever meet this mad scientist. That changed when he told Donella about the two people who were going to the Eternal Library and how one had an old notebook.

“You will infiltrate the group. This way they will not reach their journey. Now I got some intel about the two. It is not much but it is the best I could get on little notice” Donella explained as she handed Hugo the files. 

Hugo read the files starting with Yong. ‘This one should be easy as long as his friend agrees. So now to see who this Varian person is‘ he thinks as he opens Varian’s file. He pales as he reads about it. ‘This guy is the mad scientist. It is not much. It only lists his crimes, where he grew up and how he loves his racoon. He did not seem like much at the time. But I did not stay long. I did not have time to see his bad side. ‘ he lets out a deep breath.

“Okay. I will just have to make do and hope he is willing to listen to me. I will have to keep my guard up all times, but this is not the worst I have ever dealt with. He will not be happy to be double crossed, so I need to be sure he does not find out until the last possible moment.” Hugo mutters to himself as he packs.

He was able to find the two in a few days but the whole time he was stressing over meeting the two again. He was glad he had Cheese for comfort. While he worked in worse conditions, he never worked with someone like Varian. He sees the group up ahead. Their backs were turned to him so he could not see their expressions. Hugo decided to just rip the bandage off fast, so he jumped out.

“Hey. Just the two people I was looking for” Hugo announced as the two jumped in the air. Varian pointed his staff at Hugo furry in his eyes while Yong brought out some explosives. Hugo kept his cocky up to hide his fear. ‘This is it. I am dealing with the mad scientist. Wonder if he is making the kid into his apprentice. Maybe wanting him to continue his work should anything happen to him. ‘ Hugo thinks as he pulls out the totem he stole.

“Listen I want to return this to you. In exchange, I will be traveling with you two” Hugo offered as he sees both look confused ‘Okay this is good. Not being attacked so might be able to do this’ he mentally cheers as the other two looked at each other.

“Why are you doing this?” Yong asked in confusion. 

“Yeah. What do you have to gain from this? Why did you change your mind?” Varian cautiously questions. He believed in second chances, but he did not know this person, so he has no idea about his other motivations.

“Well the end goal is the same for us. That library that these totems help find. It would be easier to do this in groups. Plus, I may be a thief, but I am not heartless. I grew up having to learn this stuff to survive. Unfortunately, I do not have much of a chance to do much else in life.” Hugo lied hoping the other two will believe him.

Varian thought about Eugene. Who knows where he would have ended up if he never met Rapunzel? Varian knew sometimes all it takes is one person believing in someone to do good for them to change. 

“I do not know. You stole from us. Why should we trust you?” Yong augured then Varian patted his head.

“I trust you. I am always one for second chances” Varian smiled holding out his hand. This shocked both Hugo and Yong. Yong started to make protests, but Varian kept repeating that he was willing to give Hugo a second chance. Hugo was dumbfounded. No way it was that easy. This had to be a trick so he should keep his guard up. 

“Well Goggles, I am glad you are giving me a second chance” Hugo smirks as he shook his hand then gave the two the totem. ‘This guy must be good at manipulation if he can easily say that. He almost looks innocent, but I know what he has done, and I know people can fake innocence. ‘ he thinks as he helps the two set up camp.

Hugo waits and waits to see Varian’s true nature. But the longer he said with the group, he questioned if this was the same guy he read about. Varian always helped anyone in need even if it meant he himself got hurt or almost killed. The help was good and was not meant to hurt anyone. Sure, there were a few accidents with his ideas not working but Varian always apologized and made it up. Hugo first thought it was just to get rewards but there were some many times that Varian did things for no reward or refused one. So that could not be it. Plus, the guy was a trouble magnet. He did not cause trouble but attracted it. Add how clumsy he was that happened too often and in many dangerous situations for it to be fake.

Hugo finally thought he could see Varian’s dark side when they met Nuru. She is a royal so maybe he only showed it around royalty. Nope. Not only was he super nice and kind to her and not in a fake way, but he also allowed her to join the group. The only time Varian got mad at her was when she was being suspicious of Hugo. And even then, it was not even real anger. It was just scolding her. Hugo can’t even think of a time he saw Varian truly angry.

Hugo watched Varian and Yong interact and while they did have a student teacher relationship, Varian was not teaching him anything bad. Varian even wanted Yong to think for himself and encourage Yong to disagree with him. So, there was no way he wanted to make Yong into his evil apprentice.

This made Hugo conclude that the info he was given was wrong. There was no way for Varian to do all that stuff. Someone was trying to frame him for all that stuff and when Hugo finds that person then he will kill them. 

“So yeah that is all I have to report. There is one more thing I would like to inform you of, but it is not related to my current mission. I do find it important for you to know” Hugo explained after he gave his report to Donella. 

“Okay. Tell me. You rarely tell me off topic things that are not important” Donella allowed him as she sat back in her seat. They were at a bar in the town that the group were staying in. Hugo snuck away from the inn to come meet up with Donella.

“The file you gave me of Varian is filled with false info. The only correct part was where he was born and his love for his raccoon” Hugo informed her.

“You sure, that the info is wrong” Donella narrowed her eyes as she dug out Varian’s file.

“Yes, mam. The Boy Scout doing all those crimes? Don, I think we’ve got the wrong guy. I have watched him and there is no way he could be the one who did all that stuff. He must have been framed” Hugo answered. 

“People are really good at hiding their true selves, Hugo. I thought you knew that long before I adopted you” Donella criticized him.

“Listen, you hang out with Goggles for as long as I have. He is not some mad scientist that is going to blow at any moment. He is a dork who at worst makes mistakes that cause damage to others. He never means to hurt anyone. “ Hugo challenges 

“You have been pretty mouthy lately and your reports are getting less and less informative. I know not all the reports will be useful but not this much. “ Donella glares at Hugo.  
“I do not want to betray the group anymore. I do not know why you do not want them to reach the Eternal Library, but I am done with this. “ Hugo admits as he gets up.

“You are willing to betray me for that group of yours. After everything I did for you. You are with a kid, a princess and a criminal. Two of those three are things you do not like” Donella reminds him as she stood up as well.

“Varian is not a criminal. And yeah, the other two are people I probably would have never given a chance before, but you know what I care for them now. They give a damn about me. They trust me. They have shown me how much good there is in this world. Sure, there is still a ton of dark in the world, but they have shown me that you do not need to be cold in the world to survive. And you know what I feel so much better about myself compared to my time alone and being adopted by you. So goodbye Donella. Next time we see each other, I am your enemy” Hugo proudly declared before leaving and heading back to the inn. He gave the innkeeper some money to keep quiet about him leaving and warned him, he saw a shady group of people talking about attacking the place. The innkeeper thanked Hugo for the warning and had one of the cleaning ladies go and get the guards to help protect the inn.

Hugo felt great that night. Sure, he did not get much sleep ready just in case, Donella attacked but he was so proud for finally telling Donella off. He also did not know how to tell the others he was originally a double agent, but he will cross that bridge later. Hugo was so sure about what he said. He never felt surer and was insulted that Donella though Varian did those crimes. There was no way. Varian had no dark bone in his body. Well he was sure until he was proven wrong.

They were attacked by a group of bandits. It was a surprise attack and there were so many of them. There was no way the group could have beaten them. Varian fell down a cliff, so the bandits assumed him dead. They took Nuru, Yong, and Hugo back to their hideout. They were there for days. They had little food and water and they were being tortured by the leader of the bandits. All of them were down in spirits since they thought Varian was dead as well. Hugo was waiting for the moment to come to avenge Varian. He also took on role of comforting Nuru and Yong. Just when all hope was lost, a miracle happened.

The leader was deciding which of the three to torture when he heard screaming from outside the room. Everyone inside was confused about what was going on. Before anyone could move, one of the bandits came running in screaming. He had a ton of bugs crawling all over him and worst of all they were all biting bugs, so he was covered in bug bites as well. Another bandit came running in yelling “I can’t see. I can’t see.” His eyes when looked at were really irritated looking. Another bandit came running in not screaming but quickly it was known why. He could not speak. 

“What is going on? Who did this to my mem?” the leader yelled as he looked outside the room and saw the chaos. Soon a figure came running at the leader and knocked him back. The person was wearing a full body protection suit, so no one knew what they looked like.

“Well if you had any doubts. I did this” the person admitted in a deep voice, but it was hard to tell if that was his normal voice or was the face mask distorting it. The figure turned and saw the three in a cage. He ran over to them.

“Guys. I am sorry it took me so long, but I am he-” the figure started as he took off the mask to show it was Varian. He was shocked to find his friend looking like they did. Suddenly a dark look appeared on Varian’s face and his friends were shocked. Hugo looked at the face and realized Donella was right.

‘That face. This is it. This is his dark side. His true self. ‘ Hugo thinks scared  
“Clearly I should have done worse to your men. You will pay for what you did to my friends” Varian growled darkly as he turned to face the leader who looked scared. He did not know what he unleashed. 

The fight was scary to watch but not out of fear for Varian but scared of him. It started off with Varian throwing chemicals at the leader but then he grabbed a sword that a bandit dropped. Varian was somehow good with a sword and used it to not block the sword attack from the leader but to attack the leader back.

Everyone in the cage was scared since Varian was not himself. Nuru and Yong did not even know about what Hugo used to believe was false rumors. Now he can see that they were true. Varian kept on making threats towards the leader as they fought.

“I will be sure all the pain you caused them will be met tenfold”

“You do not deserve to live after what you did”

“I was going to get the guards from the next town deal with you, but you know what I am doing this world a service”  
“You will pay.” 

Suddenly Ruddiger came running in and looked at the situation. He ran over to Varian who had the leader pinned to the floor with the sword over his chest.

“Now will I give you a quick death or make you suffer. I did say the pain you caused my friends will be met tenfold but are you even worth it. You were so easily beaten by me” Varian laughed evilly as he was ready to kill the leader but was stopped by Ruddiger.

“What is it buddy? Can’t you see I am making this guy pay for what he did to our friends” Varian asked. He still sounded angry but there was some of his softness that the group knew him for. Ruddiger went onto Varian shoulders and made his head turn to his friends.

“I already saw them buddy. “ Varian questioned but then he saw how scared they looked and realized their eyes were on him. And that was not scared for him but of him. He had seen those looks on the citizens of Corona, but he never thought he would see it on his friends. He did not want to see that look on his friends. He threw the sword away and pulled out one of his alchemy balls. He threw it on the ground, and it made the leader stick to the ground. Varian then looked for the key to the cage making sure not to touch the chemical.

After finding the key, he unlocked the cage and his friends ran out. They did not get close to him. They were still frightened from the torture and seeing Varian like that.

“I have a camp set up not far from here. Do any of you need immediate treatment because you will collapse soon if you don’t” Varian asked and the three shook their heads. Varian did not know if that was true or if they were lying so he could not get close to them. “Okay follow me” he says as he leads the group to his camp.

The others kept their distance from him and once they made it back to camp, they tended to their wounds. They flinched when Varian tried to help so he stayed on the sidelines watching to make sure nothing was too serious. After they were done, he put some food out. He went inside his tent to give the other three sometime away from him.

‘I can’t believe I let my anger control me again. I was acting like I did when I was a villain. Did I even change? Now they fear me. I was just so worried about them and when I saw all their injuries, I just snapped. I have not had any food and sleep since they were kidnapped. This is all my fault. If I was better, then they would have never been kidnaped in the first place.’ Varian silently cries as Ruddiger curls up in his life. “Thank you, buddy for stopping me. It was a little too late but maybe it won’t be as bad as it could have been” he mutters as he pets Ruddiger.

Outside, the others were eating their food in awkward silence. They did not know what to do or what to say. So much has happened in the last hour. They went from thinking Varian was dead, to confused to what was going on, to scared by the new person, to relieve it was Varian, to happy that he was alive, then scared of that look Varian made to scared of what Varian was acting like to finally shocked by his sudden change in emotions. He went from angry and scary to scared looking. Everything happened so fast that they did not know how to process everything. It did not help being stuck in a cage and being tortured. They were lucky their wounds were not bad though they knew it was because the leader did not want them to break too fast. 

“So, what is going through everyone’s head” Hugo asked as he grabbed a second helping of food. ‘Doubt those two will talk on their own. I am still surprised I am taking this role, but they are my friends.’ he thinks. Before anyone could answer, Varian came out of his tent slowly to not scare them.

“Hey listen. I am heading into the nearby town to tell them about the bandits. Will it be alright for me to go? It will take a few hours. There is some alchemy stuff around here if needed plus all the stuff the bandits left behind and I stole back the stuff they took. I found them when I snuck into the hideout for the first time. Again, sorry for being late but I could not go in without a plan. Unfortunately, it would have taken the royal guards for this kingdom too long to get here and the guards the village had suffered a great loss from the bandits so that was why I was alone.” Varian explained as he kept his eyes off the group.

“That makes sense. And we will be fine, freckles. “ Hugo said as he looked at the other two. They nodded their head and mumbled they will be fine. Varian heads off.

‘Well Hugo is using nicknames for me so that is a good sign. Hopefully me being away from them will help the other two’ Varian thinks as he walks.

‘I am used to this kind of stuff but for Nuru and Yong this would be the worst they have experienced. Nuru might be used to threats to the royal family but this is different. They are both in shock from today's events plus add Varian sudden shift with emotions, it would be more worrisome if they were fine. But that look on Varian's face when Ruddiger has him look at us. That look meant that this has happened before even if I did not know about his past, I would know this sort of thing happened before. Given how quickly he turned back, this is not a side he likes. I need to ask him about his past. I got a list of his crimes, but I do not know his side. Maybe that will explain things’ Hugo sighed quietly as he looks at the others.

“You two, I know this is hard for the both of you but talking does help. Plus, if we are going to be traveling in a group, it is best to get things out now” Hugo reminds them as he finishes his food.

“I know, Hugo but please give us some time. We need to think about everything. Too much happened in so little time, we need time to think” Nuru admitted as she finished her food.

“Yeah. Talking with Varian is something I at least plan but I need time to sort my thoughts” Yong said.

“Fine but best get out anything you do not want Varian to hear before he comes back.” Hugo nods as he understands what they were saying. The three did change their clothes and things were quiet for a while until Nuru cleared her throat.

“I am ready to talk. How about you Yong?” Nuru asked as she looked at Yong. He nodded and the three huddled close to each other for comfort.

“Varian is our friend. We have traveled with him for so long and while I was the last to join the group based on what you two said, he has never been like that before. He only showed that side when he saw how badly we were hurt. He did take things too far, but he only did to make sure we were okay. Or at least that is how I think he saw it. He wanted us safe but since he has never seen us this bad. These wounds will heal and very few will scar plus we probably looked worse than it was since our blood was everywhere. “ Nuru started as she looked at her bandages.

“Plus, it has been a few days since we were kidnapped. I am sure Varian was pushing himself to find us but knew he was outnumbered. He could not come charging in without being sure he could get us out. He did not want anything to happen to us and since he did not know when the royal guard would arrive, he did not want us to be dead he made a plan to get to us as fast as he could” Yong reasoned.

“Yeah that makes sense. Plus, with how Goggles is. He probably blamed himself for us being kidnapped” Hugo sighed as they continued to talk. 

“Hey why are you not as bad as we are?” Yong questions noticed Hugo was not as shaken up as he and Nuru were.

“I lived on the streets and had to fight to survive. So yeah, I am used to this sort plus they did not really try. They did not want us to break us fast so especially for someone like me, it was not that bad. Plus, I have seen people worse than Varian. They are like that all the time” Hugo answered.

“So, what do we say to Varian?” Nuru asked as she looked at the others. Hugo and Yong did not know what to say. They knew they needed to talk to Varian but what was the best way to go about it.

“Do not know but we have to do it soon. This can’t be left unsaid. At the same time, we need to be careful, we do not want things to go wrong” Yong pondered how to talk to Varian.

Unfortunately for the group, Varian was back. He was not able to be seen but he could hear the group. He only was able to listen from Nuru asking what they would say to Varian. This made Varian froze. 

He had heard the people of Old Corona and the capital talk about him before when they did not notice him. He hated eavesdropping but he hated not knowing what people think about him. When he was young, no one would talk to him and he only heard whispers. So, he learned to stay hidden and where to hide to find out what people thought of him. He was heartbroken every time he heard people talk badly about him, but he used it as motivation to be better. He wanted to show them that he can do good and to make his dad proud. He continued to listen in on what people said about him even through it crushed his heart every time. The only person he did not eavesdropped on was his dad. Varian did not want to know what his dad said about him when he was not around. He knew his dad was not proud of him, he knew he would completely shatter if he heard anything bad from his dad.

It was also why he did not do that with his friends but when he heard what Nuru asked, he could not help himself. He hid and listened. Since he did not know what they were talking about before he assumed the worst plus, he has never heard anyone talk good about him before when eavesdropping. He soon shattered at their words. He heard so much more in the past that he did not want to rest. He knew what they were going to say. And he did not want to hear it. So, he left before he was able to hear the group continue. ‘I am a horrible person and there is only thing I can do to make it up’ he thinks as he walks far from the group.

“We have to let Varian know we are not scared of him. That things were happening too fast and we did not know how to process everything. “ Nuru finished as the other two cheered. So, they waited for Varian to come back discussing how to talk to him. They became worried the longer he was gone but soon they heard rustling.  
They stayed cautious just in case it was no Varian but tried to not seem like they were going to attack if it was Varian. Soon Ruddiger came running into camp frantically with Varian’s bag in his mouth. He ran over to them in a panic and the others were scared. They thought something happened to Varian and it had to be bad for Ruddiger to leave him. Ruddiger opened the bag and got out a letter that was addressed to the group. It was Varian’s handwriting. 

Hugo opened the letter to see what it said. ‘Varian must have found a way to write a letter to explain where he is and what happened. Then sent Ruddiger out to get us’ he thinks as he starts to read. Only that was not what the letter said. He paled the more he read and the other two were getting worried.

“Hugo what does it say?” Nuru demands as she grabs Ruddiger to help calm both herself and Ruddiger.

“Varian heard us. He heard you say what will say to him and must have left before he heard anything good. “ Hugo showed the letter to Nuru who gasped at what she read.

“What? What is it? There must be something more.” Yong grabbed the letter and dropped it as soon as he was done. “Varian is going to kill himself!” he shouted in a worried tone.

“Damn it. Okay everyone spread out. He had to at least be in the hearing range of us and he could not have gotten too far. We do not know how long it has been but “ Hugo started as he grabbed the bag and looked inside “Yep. Just like the note said. He wrote a letter to each of his friends and family back home. That had to take a while. So, we might be able to stop him in time. “ he finishes as he opens Varian’s tent to quickly grab a few things. He saw that the food Varian grabbed was uneaten. ‘So, he has no food plus was in a fight and he walked to the village and back. He won’t be at his 100% so we have a better chance. Just need to find him’ he thinks as he grabs some chemicals just in case, he had to restrain Varian. Hugo did not want to use them, but he did not want Varian to die.

Hugo soon ran off trying to think about where Varian would be. ‘He could be anywhere. Nothing around here has any meaning to him. He wouldn’t kill himself where the bandits are not after telling the villagers they are okay to grab them. Wait’ he remembers

Flashback

“Seriously Goggles would it kill you to pay attention to where you walk” Hugo grunted as he pulled Varian up. “How many times have you almost walked off a cliff now?” he chastised after getting Varian back to solid ground.

“Hey, I am not a fan of heights as well so not like I enjoy it” Varian rolled his eyes as he stood up “But thank you for saving me again.” he smiles as he helps Hugo up.

“If you do not like them then pay attention. Because right now you are not acting like you hate them “ Hugo argues as he makes sure Varian has no bruises or cuts.

“Listen, I have almost died so many times from height back in Corona, so I have every reason to hate them. I have been lucky I have been saved each time. “ Varian explained as he let Hugo check him.

“What is your luck with heights, freckles?” Hugo questioned as he realized what Varian said. 

“I do not know. Even before leaving Corona, I wondered about the height thing. Wonder if it is a sign from the universe. Do not know what it means and if it is good or bad, but it has to be a sign” Varian laughs as Hugo rolls his eyes.

Flashback End

“Please let me be right” Hugo prayed as he ran to where a very tall cliff side was. One that no one could survive if they fell. He remembered joking to Varian to not fall off and stay away from the edge when he saw how far the drop was. 

His prayers must have been answered since he saw footprints on the ground along the way up. They were fresh and Hugo knew they were Varian’s footprint. Hugo ran as fast as he could hoping he was not too late.

Varian was looking down from the cliff sitting down ‘So this is it. All the times I fell must have been for this. Hell, I even fell off a cliff when my friends were kidnapped. The universe was showing me how I would die but never let me until I decided to do it myself. ‘ he thinks as he takes a deep breath. “I can finally make up for everything I did. I hope the others deliver those letters and they take good care of Ruddiger. “ he whispers to himself as he slowly gets up. He feels the wind coming. It was very strong and blocked out all the other noises from the area. 

Varian gets ready to jump before being pulled away from the ledge then pinned against the wall. He looks up to see Hugo who was breathing heavily from his run. ‘Made it just in time.’ he thinks as he wonders what to say to Varian.

“Do you guys want to kill me instead?” Varian beat him to speaking but those words were heartbreaking to Hugo. They were said in such a broken tone.

“What? No. We do not want you dead. We were looking for you to save you.” Hugo comforts Varian trying to sound calm. ‘Keep calm. I have never done this before but do not think raising your voice is something one should do’ he thinks as he takes out one of Yong’s fireworks.

“This is just to let the others know where we are so they can come to us, okay” Hugo explained to Varian, so he knew what was going on.  
“Why? Why do you want me alive? After what I did” Varian cried as Hugo lit the fire work and set it off.

“Because you are our friend, Varian. You did not hear the rest of the conversation or the beginning of it. Though I do feel like there's more to this. Even with everything that happened and what you heard; you did not make this decision on a whim. You may be emotional, but you like to think about every possible thing when making any big decisions.” Hugo calmly answered Varian.

“But…But” Varian started but Hugo hushed him while moving the two of them so instead of being pinned, Varian was in Hugo’s lap.

“We do not hate you. Yes, we were scared but please understand. When you fell off that cliff days ago, we thought you were dead. I was planning on killing the leader to avenge you. The torture we went through was not the worst it could be since the leader wanted to break us slowly. I am used to that stuff while Nuru and Yong are not. Suddenly all this crazy stuff happens, then you come in, but we couldn’t recognize you because of the face mask. Once we did see you, we were happy then when we saw your dark side. Especially for Nuru and Yong, it is a lot to take in. Plus, as soon as you saw us scared, you suddenly went back to normal. We did not know how to process stuff and unfortunately you have some issues with your dark side that when you saw how scared we were and heard that, your mind could not take it anymore. Am I right?” Hugo asked as he looked at Varian. Varian was looking up at the sky.

“Can we wait for the other two to come? I do not want to repeat myself?” Varian requested 

“Sure, we can. Oh look, there is Yong’s firework. It means they are close” Hugo agrees while pointing to the firework. The two waited for a few more minutes until they heard two people running.

“Varian” the two sounded relieved as they went over to them and sat beside Hugo.

“I already explained what happened to us.” Hugo mentions before the others could speak.

“Thanks Hugo. We are sorry Varian. We should have talked before you left but we did not know what to say” Nuru apologized with Hugo agreeing.

“You guys do not need to apologize. I was the one who messed up so I should be the one to say sorry” Varian objected not understanding why they were apologizing.  
“We should have known how this would affect you. You have always been there for us and while you did go a little overboard, you weren't doing it because you were a bad person but because you wanted to keep us safe” Yong explained.

“Yong is right. You may have gone too far but you are not a bad person. “ Hugo reassured Varian. ‘I should have known that was not his true self. This Varian’s true self. Not that wanting to kill himself part but the caring part. He cares about others and that was the worst he had seen us. Of course, he would get protective of us. Now I just need to know about those crimes. They had to be to protect someone’ he thinks.

“Well I guess I should explain myself. To explain everything including why I was planning on this, it will take a while. It is basically my life story from before leaving on this journey.” Varian warned them he looked at everyone.

“Take as much time as you need. We are willing to listen” Nuru promised as she got comfortable along with Yong.

Varian began to tell his story. From his earliest memories to meeting the princess to the amber incident to his crimes to what happened with Cass all the way to him leaving for the trials. It was a long story and by the time he was done, the sun had set. They did stop to make a small fire so they could see each other. There were multiple times where Varian cried from one of his memories, he told the group, but they comforted him each time and waited for him to be ready to continue.

“That is everything. That is why I am so fucked up. You three still want to travel with me?” Varian hit himself in the head as he finished his story. 

“Of course, we want to still travel with you” the three reassured him while Hugo stopped Varian from hitting himself again.

“Varian. With everything you went through, it would be more worrisome if you had no issues. Look at me, I was an orphaned force to steal to live and saw the harshness and coldness of the world at an early age. Look at how I turned out, sure my love for alchemy was always there but who knows how different I would be if I lived a different life. Given everything that happened to you, I am shocked you aren’t even a little like me.” Hugo revealed.

“The fact that you heard so many times that people hated you and you still wanted to help them and make things easier for them shows how strong you are. You still want to help others and I just have more respect for you. “ Nuru explained.

“Now I understand some of the things you taught before and why you wanted me to think for myself. You really are an inspiration, Varian. “ Yong marvel.

“I do not understand. I kidnapped the queen, almost killed the rural family, -” Varian started before Hugo put his finger to Varian’s lips.

“Yes, you went too far. But you realized you were in the wrong which is not an easy task. Not with you all alone and only having a manipulative bastard for company. You do not try to make your actions look good. You said they were wrong and that you deserved jail. You were ready to face the consequences for your actions even when you were pardoned. You did not expect the citizens to like you after what you did. You never got angry at the things they did and said to you. Plus, you are still so kind and helpful. Not many people could do what you did. “ Hugo ruffles Varian’s head.

“I guess I never saw it like that. After what I did, I became aware of this dark side of me. He only came up when someone I cared for was in danger, but I always pushed him down” Varian admits as he makes Hugo stop messing up his head.

“That is not healthy. How often do you express your negative emotions?” Nuru asked. Her kingdom might not be as advanced as Hugo’s kingdom, but they were the best at the mind. They constantly were studying how the mind works and what effects certain events could leave.

“Almost never. Outside when I mess up and call myself an idiot or berate myself.” Varian sheepishly admits. The others did not like that.

“Varian that is really bad for your mental help. Before you go back to Corona, you should look at my kingdom’s research on the mind. I, along with everyone else, will help you. There are much better ways to deal with negative emotions than pushing them away. “ Nuru explains.

“Yeah. I may not know much about how the mind works but keeping everything locked in is a bad idea. “ Yong told Varian.

“So, you are saying I made things worse for myself” Varian groans as he leans against Hugo.

“Well can’t deny that but do not blame yourself. You had a rough life and the first time you showed anger to other people, it led you to being in jail. So, it makes sense that you would be scared to show your anger especially to those you have wronged before.” Hugo assured Varian

“Thanks guys but I do not think I will get better anytime soon” Varian confessed looking down.

“Varian the one thing about the mind is it takes the longest to heal and sometimes will never fully go away. We are not expecting you to get better overnight. We do not expect you to get better after this one talk. This is something we know will take time and we are there to listen when you need us. You always listen when we need help so we will just be doing the same thing you did” Nuru explained.

“If you guys say so. If I go too far again, please yell or slap me. Anything to make me stop” Varian pleaded.

“We will Varian. If that is what you like us to do. And we will help you learn to better express those negative emotions” Yong smiled.

“Well I do not know about you guys, but I am getting tired so how about we head back to camp” Varian said as he stood.

“You are eating first. I saw the uneaten food and doubt you ate while you were gone. Going the whole day with only breakfast is not good.” Hugo scolded as he got up. Varian went still knowing they would be mad when they heard the meals he missed and the sleep he never got. Nuru sees him still, she gets suspicious.

“Varian when was the last time you ate” Nuru went into mom mode as the other liked to call it.

“The time we ate before you guys were kidnapped. Also did not sleep since then as well” Varian admitted.

“Varian. That is not good. I do not know how you are standing right now. If you need help walking Hugo will help. I know you were worried but take care of yourself” Nuru lectures as Hugo nods going next to Varian.

“I am sorry. I surprised you guys did not notice my dark circles.” Varian said as the group headed back to camp.

“Given everything that happened, it was not something we were looking for. Plus, when we found you, we were worried about injuries, so it is easy to overlook the dark circles. You kept your head low the whole time you were talking and now it is dark” Yong reasoned.

Hugo wraps his arm around Varian just in case he collapsed from exhaustion or hunger. Most likely both. ‘Donella was right. The info was correct, but she was also wrong. Those crimes do not show Varian’s true self. Plus given how little he slept and ate; it is not a surprise he acted like that. He was probably running on pure emotions at that point. Probably still is the case which is why he isn't collapsing but as soon as he calms down, he will. Donella you do not know Varian. He is not evil. He is a good person who when pushed too hard reacts with his emotions. Yeah, he did bad things but it's always for a good reason. And despite everything he went through, he is still a kind and warm person. I do not need your worldview anymore. ‘ he thinks as they reach camp. 

Hugo did not know what the future had in store, but he was ready to take it on with his friends. He has their back and they have his.


End file.
